Trolley harp



March 9 1926. 1,575,800

M. D. STALDER TROLLEY HARP Filed March 14, 1925 Air-wr P?? Patented Mar. 9, 1926. Y p

UNI-TED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

MERLE D. STALDER, E LINCOLN, NEBRASKA.

TROLLEY HARP.

Application 4filled March 14, 1925. Serial No. 15,562.

To all @07mm t muy concern.' A in like vcharacters of reference denote corre- Be it known that I,.M-ni .nn D. Sinn-Dian, a spending parts, the `reference `character l() citizen of the United States, residing at Linindicates .a hollow cylindrical clainp which celu, in the county 0l' Lancaster .and State has one side split andprovides outwardly vi5 ot Nebraska, have invented newand useful extending apertured ears thereon through Improvements in Trolley Harpe, of which which an adjusting bolt l1 extends, in :or-,der the following is .a specification. that the said clainp l0 may be adjustable This invention relates to improvements in With respect .to 'the sizey et the upperl end trolley harps :and contemplates vthe proviportion or" ati'olley pole 12.. Extendingup- T0 .sion 4of bushings therein which niakes it poswardly and outwardly `and parallel with co sible for using oil as av lubricator instead oi' respect to the clainp l0 is a pair of arins lgraphite bushings iii order that t-he moving which have relatively enlarged upper lporl parts fof the harp will `be constantly oiled in y:tions aligned. registering .openings 14 inthe their operation. enlarged upper portions thereof.v Extend T .Another-object ofthe invention :is the proing outwardly through the openingslf zpro- 65 vision of insulating means included-in the vided in the upper enlarged portions ol: theharp- ;in order that the trolley wheel and arm -13 are trunnions 155 which extend thereelectl'ic @Clarinet-.ing means 'will be. spaced in through lll'om'the Outelfsides 4Oli Cup'shaped -orderitliat the oil will not interfere with any ymembers 16 Aarranged between the yinner 20 of fh@ elect-yi@ Conducting means, sides of the arins 13,V `and the .said trunnons 70 .A further vobject of the invention is the l5 are held rigidly with the arins 13. through provision 'of Spring fingers included lupon a 'the instrumentality oi' set screws or the like trolley wheel and which have their upper 416 provided in the upper portions of the end pontions substantially offset and narni Thesefcup shaped ineinbers 16 fufrwardrly enteifiding and including weighted 'ther include outwardly 4extending lportions 75 end portions 4thereon which engage Within 1S with reinforcing ribs 19 extending in opposite sides .and Within the Agroove of the .dianietrically ropposite :directions upon the ltrolley wheel in .order that the Current may outer faces thereof vand vwhich reinforce or loe conducted to the wheel and thence to the support and prevent. breakage ci? fthe portrolley line in order :that a complete circuit '610115 vso is assured through the harp perse. Positioned within they cup shaped por- With the above and other'objects in view, tions of the cup shaped in'eniber 16 and upon the `invention further :includes the `following the inner sides thereof are correspondingly .novel features anddetails of construction, to shaped insulators 2@ which may be .formed be :hereinafter more fully described, illusoi fibre `or porcelain and which lhave ltheir 85 trate'd in the .accompanying `drawing and inner edges lying in thesaine lplane Withithe pointed out'in 'the `appended claiins; outwardly extending portions T8 fof-the cujp In the drawings shaped inenibers 16. Pairs l'oi superimposed EFigure l is aside elevation of the harp. bushings 21 fitted within the cupped or- 40 Figure 2 is a vertical sectiontaken on line vtions of vthe cup shaped insulator 2O ave' 90 'Q4-42ofFigure l. connected therewith cups 22 `whereby `oifl Vlljgmxe 3 is ,a Seetion taken on line 3-3 inay be applied between :the bushings Q11 fin of Figure land showing fthe novel arrangeorder that undue wear will not be exercised linent of theelectric conducting nieans with upon these bushings. the `trolley 'wheel'. Also iitted within -cup shaped insulators 95 Figure 4 is `a transverse section taken on '20 are glass thinible insulators 28 Vwhich aline :4l-let Figure l `and showing thenovel have their Sou'ter edges engaging the inner Aassociatifng means of the harp with the trolvbush-ing fitted inthe cupfshape insulator f2() l Yleyfpjol'e;V and adapted for Vi-ote'ition'-therewitli, the in- Reterraigito .the drawing iu detail5 wliere= :ner end portions et the glassfthimhle 'im me sulators 23 extend inwardly an appreciable distance and further than the corresponding portions of the insulator 2O and the outwardly extending portions 1S of the cup shaped member 16.

A trolley wheel 24 is then placed between the glass thimble insulators 23 and which includes a shaft member 25 which has its opposite end portions' bearingly mounted within the glass thimble insulators and which is keyed thereto.

In order to provide means for preventing the oil from the oil cups 22 and the bushings 21 'from contacting with the glass thimble insulators 23 and trolley wheel 24 as well as the shaft member 25, there is provided a pair of dielectric disk members 26 which engage the outer side walls of the trolley wheel 24 and which space the outwardly extending portions 18 of the cup shaped member 16, the inner edges of the bushings 2l and insulator 2O from the outer sides of the trolley wheel 24, and having openings provided centrally thereof and which receive therein the inwardly extending portions of the glass thimble insulators 23 whereby oil is prevented from contacting with the trolley wheel and its shaft 25 in order that no short circuit will be caused from the association of the elec- A tricity and oil in the harp.

In order to electrically energize the trolley wheel 24, which of course will receive in the grooved portion 27 thereof provided in its periphery a trolley line, I provide a dielectric disk 28 which is fitted within the upper hollow portion of the trolley pole 12 and which includes a binding post 29 having its lower end connected to a suitable conducting wire 30 which leads to the operating mechanism of the car. The upper portion of the binding post 29 secures the intermediate portion of a spring strip which is substantially offset therefrom and which provides outwardly and upwardly extending arms 31 which are again inwardly offset and include weights 32 upon the upper ends thereof and which are adapted to be received in the grooved portion 27 in the trolley wheel 24 adjacent the lower end thereof whereby the electricity passing 'from a trolley line, not shown, will pass through the trolley wheel 24, the arm 31, binding post 29, and the conducting wires 30V in order that the car may be put in motion in either direction according to the desires of the engineer or motorman.

It will thus be seen `from the foregoing description and accompanying drawing that this special type of trolley harp provides a very efficient form of harp which may effectively contact with a trolley line, not shown, which may conduct the electricity therefrom through the arms 31 and the conducting wire 30 without subjecting the working organisms thereof the graphite or oil owing to the relative arrangement and spacing of the insulators therein. It will also be noted that graphite bushings and the like are not utilized in the construction of this special type of trolley harp, but the ordinary and usual type of bushings are used and which are lubricated by the oil cups 22 and which will more effectively lubricate the bushings 21 than would graphite as the successive revolutions of the trolley wheel 24 and shaft 25 will tend to overheat the graphite and dry the same and when doing so will remove all the lubricant qualities thereof, wherein the oil will not be caused to lose its lubricating qualities owing to its subjection to the heat caused by the successive revolutions of the trolley wheel 24 and its shaft 25, whereby the said working organisms, that is, the bushings 21 and glass thimble insulators 23 will freely r0- tate owing to their partial submersion in oil.

The invention is susceptible of various changes in its form, proportions and minor details of construction and the right is herein reserved to make such changes as properly fall within the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention what is claimed is:

1. In a trolley harp, the combination of supporting means included upon the upper portion of a trolley pole, auxiliary supporting means included upon the supporting means, insulating means included within the auxiliary supporting means, bushings interposed between the insulating means, lubricating means connected with the bushings, insulating means interposed between the bushings, auxiliary supporting means and trolley wheel, and of electric conducting means having yfrictional engagement with the trolley wheel in order that the mechanism of a trolley car and the like may be energized.

2. A trolley harp of the character described comprising a split clamping member fitted upon the upper portion of a trolley pole and having upwardly and outwardly extending supporting arms provided thereon, a pair of substantially cup shaped supporting members having trunnions ext-ending outwardly from the outer sides thereof, means included in the supporting arms for securing and holding the trunnions rigidly therewith, a substantially cup shaped insulator fitted within the Cup shaped supporting member, pairs of bushings arranged in superimposed relation within the cup shaped insulator, each of the cup shaped insulators including glass thimble insulators included therein and spaced therefrom by the bushings, a shaft member having its end portions journaled within the glass thimble insulators, a trolley wheel keyed to the shaft, insulating disks spacing the bushings, cup shaped insulator and cup shaped supporting member on the trolley Wheel, oiling means associated with the bushings, and spring tensioned Contact members included inthe upper portion of the trolley Wheel and having their outer free end portions Weight ed and tensioned against and Within the groove of the trolley Wheels substantially as 10 set forth.

In testimony whereof I aiix my signature.

MERLE D. STALDER. 

